Hidden Lives
by HPFFwriter
Summary: AU. Fearing attack on his son, James Potter makes the difficult decision to send Harry, his younger brother, their mother, and Remus Lupin to America to keep them safe. Meanwhile, he has stayed behind to continue the fight against Lord Voldemort.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer - **Anything that you recognize to belong to the Harry Potter universe is not mine, but J.K. Rowling's. The storyline and plot and any other characters, however, are the sole property of myself.

**A/N**: Due to a mistake, this story was deleted off the website, so I'm reposting it now. Thanks.

* * *

James Potter smiled weakly as he entered his Godric's Hollow home and his two sons – five-year-old Harry and three-year-old Nicholas – ran in to greet him. He immediately knelt to their level and accepted their enthusiastic hugs, holding them longer than he normally would – who knew when he would be able to do so again?

"Guess what, Daddy!" Harry said eagerly. "Uncle Moony brought me a real Snitch to play with!"

"And he gotted me a _beetle!_" Nicholas yelled over his brother.

James raised his eyebrow as his wife and best friend entered. "A beetle?" he asked Remus.

The werewolf shrugged and grinned. "To my credit, it's a beetle that can be trained," he said. "How'd everything go today?"

The momentary amusement he'd been filled with evaporated immediately. He glanced at his sons. "Er, Remus, could you keep an eye on the boys for a few minutes? I have to talk to Lily."

Remus' brow furrowed at the look on his friend's face. "Yeah, sure," he said as James led his wife out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

"James, what is it?" Lily asked concernedly as they went up the stairs. Her husband only shook his head as they entered their bedroom and closed the door.

Lily sat on the bed while James paced in front of her. It was a few minutes before he spoke; there wasn't any easy way to even begin to phrase this. He gulped before finally speaking. "You have to take the boys and leave the country," he said, stopping to look directly at his wife. Her eyebrows rose, but before she could speak, he went on. "Dumbledore and Mad-Eye have been comparing notes, and they've come to the conclusion that even though our home is protected against most attacks, we're not. Any time you leave the house, you and the boys are–"

"So we stay in the house!" Lily interrupted, standing. "What makes you think we have to leave the _country_?"

James sighed. "Because the Fidelius Charm isn't going to last," he said. "And even if we keep attempting to recast it, it's going to lose more strength every time. The only way to ensure that Voldemort doesn't find Harry is for you to take him and leave."

Lily stared openmouthed at him. "And what about you?" she asked.

James shuffled uncomfortably under his wife's stare. "Well, I'd stay," he said. She opened her mouth angrily, but he quickly began speaking. "Just for the time being! I can't just pack up and leave my friends!"

"And what about my_ parents_?" Lily retorted, getting angry now. "You're so concerned about Remus, Sirius, and Peter that you're forgetting about them, aren't you?"

"No, I'm not," James said, feeling quite offended. "Maybe if you'd listen for a moment, I could explain my plan." Lily crossed her arms and sat back on the bed again. Though she was silent now, her glare was saying much more than she'd said in the last five minutes. "Look, I'm not a fan of this, but think about it, Lily. Voldemort isn't going to cross any oceans to search for Harry, and even if he did, he'd have a hell of a lot of searching to do in America to find you."

"America?" Lily asked skeptically.

James nodded. "Yeah, why not?" he replied. "If you stay in Europe, the chances that you'll be found attacked are much more likely."

"No, James," Lily said flatly, starting to leave the room. "I am not leaving my family, my friends, and my husband just because Mad-Eye Moody is having a paranoid thought!"

James sat on the bed. "It's not just Mad-Eye," he said quietly as Lily started to open the door. She stopped and listened. "How much more of this can we actually take, Lily? The boys can't go out and play with the kids in the neighborhood; they have to wait until Frank and Alice or Molly and Arthur can get their kids over. When was the last time you went out with your friends and just had fun? Or dared to go see your Muggle sister without being worried that Death Eaters might be watching you, then target her just for the fun of it? I can't remember the last time I was able to take my family out for the day without planning it for weeks and looking over my shoulder every thirty bloody seconds. Harry and Nicholas deserve more than this. They deserve their freedom and to live without worrying. I don't know what else to do…"

Lily turned around again as her husband's voice broke. She approached him and kneeled in front of him. "James, I know you're worried," she said, taking his hands. "But the solution isn't separating you from your family."

"It wouldn't be for long," James said again. "Just until it's safe enough for you to bring them back."

"When do you think that might be?" she asked gently. "Do you really think I would sleep easily knowing my husband and father to my children is here fighting the darkest, most feared wizard in a century?"

James' watery hazel eyes met his wife's gorgeous emerald green ones. Every time he saw them, he fell even deeper in love with her and that made it easier for him to say what he did next. "I want you to be safe," he said strongly. "I'm begging you to do this for me, Lily, even if you don't believe what I'm saying or if you don't think anything has changed."

She sighed. "Can I just… think this over for a bit?" she asked. "I'm not saying no; just give me some time to think, all right?"

James nodded. "Fair enough, I s'pose," he said with a small grin. "And if it will help your decision along, maybe I could ask Moony to go along with you."

She led the way out of the room. "What makes you think Remus might want to go?" she asked.

He shrugged. "Werewolves need holidays too," he replied, attempting humor. Lily shot him a glare over her shoulder, but her lips were twitching slightly.

"Okay!" she called, reentering the kitchen where the boys had tackled Remus to the ground. "Who wants pizza?"

After a few moments, Lily was able to disentangle her sons and the wizard. Remus pushed himself off the ground, his hair ruffled and his breathing heavy, but he grinned widely at James. "Well, I tried to tire them out," he said, "but I don't think I managed it."

James chuckled and clapped his friend on the shoulder. "It's all right, Sirius and Peter are coming by later; between the four of us, they'll be passed out before dessert." He shrugged. "Either that or we will… Before they get here, I need to talk to you."

* * *

"Why's Moony getting a bloody holiday?" Sirius whined later that evening in James' office. He'd just told his friends what he had proposed to Lily and was warily watching their reactions. "I could use a bit of relaxation too, you know!"

James rolled his eyes and sipped at his firewhiskey. "We all could," he said dully. "But Moony's the only one of us who doesn't have a job and, no offence, Remus, doesn't have much of a chance of getting one over here."

Remus raised his glass. "No offence taken, Prongs," he said slightly drunkenly. "So when does this little trip happen?"

James shrugged. "Depends on what Lily decides. As of right now, she doesn't think it's necessary to go; I spent half an hour trying to convince her."

"Do _you_ really think it's necessary?" Peter asked. "I mean, it's not like You-Know-Who has gotten any closer to finding you."

Sirius shook his head at his friend. "When are you going to start calling him by his name, Wormtail?" he asked wearily. "All of us do!"

Peter wrung his hands nervously. "Well, I'm just not as comfortable with it as you are," he said defensively.

"Leave him alone, Sirius," James said, throwing a quill at the wizard. "To answer your question, Peter, yes, I do think it absolutely necessary. While Sirius has done a bang up job as Secret-Keeper," he nodded respectively at his friend; Sirius raised his drink in response, "Dumbledore is afraid that the longer this war goes on, Voldemort may find a way around it. His spy says Voldemort is already studying the charm, looking for loopholes; he knows damn well Sirius isn't going to voluntarily tell him and he's found out several times that Sirius can throw his Imperius Curse without breaking a sweat, something most wizards die trying to do. One of my biggest concerns is that he might try taking Sirius hostage, weakening him to the point where there is no resistance, and putting him under the Imperius Curse that way–"

"Way to kill the buzz, Prongs, thanks," Sirius said dully, setting down his drink.

"You know it's a possibility," James said sternly. "Don't act like it's not. None of us are invincible, no matter how much we try to convince ourselves otherwise. If Lily and the boys are out of the country, we can lift the charm and Sirius will be mostly free of attack. And then we can concentrate on bringing Voldemort down."

Sirius, Remus, and Peter looked uneasily at each other, all noting the fear and intensity in their best friend's voice. "If it will make you feel a bit better," Remus said slowly, looking directly at James, "I'll try talking to Lily. She usually listens to me, doesn't she?"

James gave him a half-smile. "Thanks, mate."

* * *

Several days later, Lily had very reluctantly agreed to James' plan to keeping their family safe. Once James had had her consent, he'd presented very detailed plans as though he'd had them all along. Lily knew, in hindsight, that he had. She and Remus would take the boys to a small town in America and live under fake names and fake stories. While Lily thought it unlikely that this would keep them hidden from Lord Voldemort, James and Dumbledore were absolutely convinced that if they stuck to their stories, they would be safe.

So on a rather cold, rainy evening in late November, James was loading luggage into the car Lily had convinced him to buy years ago for convenience. Lily stood on their porch wrapped in a jacket, listening as her son's said goodbye to Sirius and Peter.

"Be good for your mum," Sirius was telling Harry sternly. "Only play your pranks on Moony, understand?"

Harry laughed as Remus presumably slapped his best friend.

James finished packing the car, closed the lid of the boot, and walked back up the sidewalk to the porch. "You'll be all right," he told Lily, rubbing his hands across her arms to warm and comfort her. "Remus will take care of you."

She nodded, trying and failing to smile. "I know he will," she responded. "I just really wish you could come with us."

James swallowed hard. "So do I," he said in a thick voice. "But I'll visit when I can. Sirius and Peter too. I'm sure your parents will want to as well."

"You'll tell them what happened, won't you?" Lily asked.

"Of course I will," he responded. "First thing tomorrow, I promise."

Someone cleared their throat behind Lily. James looked up to find Remus watching them apologetically. "We have to get to the airport," he said regretfully.

James nodded. "Just another minute," he said. Remus nodded understandingly and returned inside. James looked back at his wife. "No matter what happens, remember that I love you and that's why I'm doing this. Nothing else is more important than keeping you and my sons safe. Before you know it, you'll be back home, Voldemort will be gone, and we can be a family again."

Lily's response was to kiss James more deeply than she ever had. She put every ounce of love she had into the kiss, making absolutely certain James knew that it wasn't optional for him to come out of the war alive. It lasted not even a minute, but it seemed less than a few seconds before James was pulling away from her.

"You have to go," he told her remorsefully, barely fighting back his tears. He grabbed her hand and pulled her inside. "All right, boys, give Daddy a hug."

…

Nearly an hour later, Remus ushered Harry and Nicholas into their seats on the airplane before letting Lily in and sitting beside her. She hadn't said a word during the drive to the airport, even when Marlene McKinnon had attempted so hard to start conversation as she drove them. Now she silently buckled the boys into their seats, pulled the shade on the window so they would be more tempted to sleep, and stared at the ceiling.

"Would you like something to drink?" Remus asked her quietly.

She shook her head, now closing her eyes.

With a sigh, Remus reached beneath his seat for his knapsack and pulled out one of the books Sirius had thought he would enjoy. He chuckled at the title – _Pranking the Moon: Practical Jokes Fit for a Werewolf _– and settled in for a long flight.

* * *

"Mum, why couldn't we have just taken a portkey?" Harry asked rather loudly as they walked through the very crowded airport in New York City. "It would've been quicker!"

"Harry, hush!" Lily chided, looking around. "I told you, we're traveling the Muggle way. Remember how excited you were about this before?"

"That was before I knew how bloody long it would take!"

"Harry James, watch your language!"

Remus chuckled as he adjusted a sleeping Nicholas on his hip. "How about a bite to eat?" he asked. "We've got another hour of our layover after all."

They settled for a simple hamburger lunch. Remus ordered while Lily did her best to keep the boys in their seats and only had a minor language barrier at the counter when he attempted to order chips with the hamburgers instead of French fries. Luckily he had been smart enough to convert their wizard money to Muggle currency before leaving England and had converted the British pounds to American dollars upon their arrival in New York.

He thanked the young woman at the counter and took the tray of food and drink back to the table Lily had picked out. "All right, boys," he said, sitting down. "Dig in."

Both Harry and Nicholas enjoyed their lunches that were packed in a cardboard house-like box, as well as the toy cars they received as prizes. Lily watched in amusement as her sons talked about their first plane ride, Harry telling his younger brother in quieter than normal tones that he could fly quicker than the plane on a broomstick. When she had finished with her own meal, Lily looked at Remus. "Er, I'm going to the ladies and to make a call…" she said quietly. "Can you manage for a few moments?"

Remus smiled. "Of course I can," he replied. "Tell James hello for me."

* * *

James heard the telephone downstairs in the kitchen ringing and nearly killed himself getting out of the shower to get to it. He completely forgot to dry himself off or to even grab a towel and took the stairs three at a time before sliding across the wooden floor made slippery by his wet feet and stumbling across the kitchen before the phone stopped ringing.

"Hello? Hello?" he said hastily, hoping she hadn't hung up yet.

"Hi," Lily's voice said happily. "Did I catch you at a bad time?"

He laughed. "Er, no, not at all," he replied, taking the phone and sitting at the kitchen table. "Just got out of the shower actually. Where are you?"

"An airport in New York," she replied tiredly. "Remus and the boys are eating – Remus says hello, by the way – and I had a few minutes before we have to run to catch our next plane, so I wanted to check on you."

"Check on me?" James asked in mock-offence. "Lily, you've been gone less than a day; I can't have blown the house up by now."

She laughed. "Well, with Sirius hanging around as much as I'm sure he is, it'll only be a matter of time."

"You don't give us nearly enough credit, my love."

"Even so," Lily said, her smiled evident in her voice. "I wanted to remind you that I love you very much and to take care of yourself."

He smiled into the phone, knowing she couldn't see him. "I love you too," he responded.

She sighed and James briefly heard one of his sons in the background, followed by Remus' voice calling for him to wait. "I have to go," she said sadly. "I'll call you when we land again."

"All right. Give the boys a hug and kiss for me," he said. "And punch Moony in the shoulder for Sirius – he found out Moony left the itching powder in his underwear drawer."

She laughed again. "Consider it done. I'll speak to you soon."

"Bye," James said before she hung up. It was a few more moments before he forced himself to stand and put the phone back on its cradle. He walked slowly back up to the bathroom to dry off and get dressed, wondering if he'd made a mistake by sending his family so far away. He already missed them as though he hadn't seen them in years. He had to keep reminding himself that Voldemort's threat was very real and they were safer where they would be going.

As he pulled on his jeans, he heard his front door open and Sirius calling for him so they could get to the Order meeting. With a sigh, James headed down the stairs.

* * *

Remus and Lily looked out the taxi windows as the car drove through rain and trees to their new, hopefully very temporary home.

"Where're you folks from?" the driver asked, glancing in the rearview mirror at them.

"England," Remus responded with a smile.

The driver nodded. "Thought so," he said. "Love your accents."

Remus' lips twitched as he glanced at Lily. "Yours aren't bad either," Lily told the driver as he turned a corner. "I think I see it, boys!"

Nicholas and Harry did their best to worm out of their seatbelts and climb into the adults' laps to look out the windows. "Where? I don't see anything!" Nicholas said.

They had arrived in a very small neighborhood, only three or four houses in it, all spread out from one another. Each house had its own personality and Lily immediately thought she knew why James and Dumbledore had thought she would prefer this place to anywhere else. The view was gorgeous. The neighborhood stood at the base of a snowcapped mountain and was as surrounded by trees as the road they'd just come from. If this hadn't been enough, Lily was able to see a lake directly behind one of the larger homes.

"Which one is ours, Mummy?" Harry asked, craning his neck to look out the window.

To Lily's delight, their taxi pulled into the driveway of the lakefront house and stopped. "You need any help getting your luggage inside?" the driver asked as Remus pulled out some money for him.

"No, we'll be fine," Remus said, handing him the cash. "Keep the change, my good man."

The driver looked briefly at the amount Remus had given him and beamed. "Thanks!" he said enthusiastically, getting out to at least open the trunk of the car for them.

"How much did you give him?" Lily asked quietly as she and Remus lugged the suitcases to the porch, glancing back as the driver seemed very eager to help them out in any way. Harry and Nicholas had already run forward and were now peering into the windows.

"Well, the fare was thirty dollars, and I gave him a fifty," Remus responded, turning to watch the driver pull out of the driveway. Lily rolled her eyes and shook her head. Once the taxi had gone, Remus pulled his wand from his jacket pocket and tapped the doorknob. "_Alohomora."_

The door opened and the four of them stood, staring in awe. From the outside, the house had looked large, but inside, someone had very obviously used magic. There looked to be three levels to the house, though only two on the outside. The living room was large enough to hold the entire Order of the Phoenix and most of their families; the kitchen was only a bit smaller than the Hogwarts kitchen; and the bedrooms were nearly triple the size of the ones in the Potters' Godric's Hollow home. Somebody had fully furnished the home for them, making their transition to their new life that much easier.

"It's a bloody mansion," Remus whispered to Lily as the boys chased each other up and down the staircases.

Lily only nodded. They had entered the room she would soon claim as her own and found that the closet was the size of Nicholas's old room. "I wonder what's on the third level," she said as Harry found a door that hid a set of stairs. She had believed it to be a linen closet.

The two adults followed the boys up to discover two rooms: one a playroom for the boys and the other a small office and library for Remus. In the latter seemed to be every book Remus could ever find remotely interesting. "I could definitely learn to like this," Remus said, grinning as he explored the bookcases.

Chuckling, Lily entered the playroom where Nicholas had climbed into a toy box in a corner and was now throwing out toys he found uninteresting. Harry had discovered a toy broomstick and was flying around the room, somehow avoiding every object in his way – Lily wondered if it had been charmed that way. "Boys, you can play later," she said. "Go grab your bags, find a bedroom, and unpack before dinner."

"Aww, Mum!" Harry said, coming to a halt mere inches from his mother's kneecaps. "Do we have to?"

"Yes, you have to," Lily said, pulling Harry off the broomstick and placing him on the floor. "That goes for you too, Remus!"

"Aww, Lily, do I have to?" came Remus' whining voice from his office.

Lily rolled her eyes and chuckled as she headed downstairs to the front hall again. As she stepped off the last stair, she noticed something sitting on a table beside the door. It was a note with her name written in very familiar handwriting. She smiled, quickly making her way towards it and picking it up to read it.

_My dearest Lily,_

_Though I know it is nothing but the deepest torture being apart from me, I hope that while you and the boys are living in the states, your time there will be comfortable. I've given this house some personal touches that I hope all four of you will appreciate. While the boys are playing upstairs in their own rooms, you can spend your free time in your very own potions lab in the basement. I hope you will think of me every time you walk down those stairs and inhale what can very often become toxic scents – just make sure you open a window… _

Lily chuckled and shook her head.

_Furthermore, on a much more serious note, please inform our resident werewolf that there is a very safe place in which he can spend his full moon nights. Our favorite Headmaster found the perfect spot – if he follows the path around that gorgeous lake and into the woods, he will find a stone well covered with a stone door. There is a specific string of words that he will need to speak as he taps his wand on the door for it to open and reveal a staircase down to a very comfortable, very soundproof room. If he needs a hint of which words to use, remind him of the map._

_Tuck the boys in for me and tell them I love them. I promise that I will see you soon, my love. Take care of yourself, the boys, and Moony. And don't forget to prank the latter at least once a week to keep him on his toes. _

_I love you more than words can say._

_Yours always, _

_James_


	2. Chapter 2

"Well?"

A tall, pale man stood in front of a fireplace, his back towards the door as he waited patiently for news. The new arrival hesitated nervously in the doorway, swallowing hard before taking a few steps inside before speaking.

"They have left, my Lord," the arrival said as loudly as he dared.

Lord Voldemort didn't even twitch at the news. "Where have they gone?" he asked quietly.

The arrival sighed as though knowing what his next answer would result in. "I do not know, my Lord. It was decided that their destination should remain secret."

"Or perhaps they just did not think you worthy of telling," the Dark Lord responded coldly, only now turning to face the arrival. "Did I not tell you that you were not to report to me until you have discovered where they have gone?"

"Well, yes, my Lord, but–"

"But nothing!" Voldemort said angrily, removing his wand from his cloak. "You had your instructions and yet you defy me still! I warned you of the consequences, did I not?" The other wizard began to panic, to beg for mercy, but Lord Voldemort's wand was quicker. "_Crucio!"_

* * *

Lily Potter woke rather suddenly after her first night's sleep in her new home and her first thought was that the half of the bed she hadn't slept on was much too cold to be normal. With a heavy sigh, wondering what James was doing, Lily pushed her blankets away and got out of bed. She dressed slowly, trying to remind herself that she had to put on a brave face for her two young sons, and once she was certain it hadn't looked as though she'd cried herself to sleep in the very wee hours of the morning, she headed out to the hallway. Almost immediately, scents of eggs, bacon, and french toast filled her nostrils. With a very sincere smile on her face, she headed down the stairs where she heard Harry and Nicholas talking and laughing about something.

In the kitchen, Remus stood at the stove, monitoring breakfast with his wand as he listened in amusement to Harry telling his younger brother about how he'd learned several Chaser tactics from their father the week before. "And if I catch you diving like I saw your father last week," Lily said, announcing her arrival, "you will be grounded until your eleventh birthday."

"Morning, Mummy!" Nicholas said happily, jumping out of his chair to give her a hug.

"Good morning, sweetie," the witch replied, accepting the hug gratefully. "Remus, that smells wonderful."

The wizard grinned. "Well, I thought you might appreciate a good meal," he said.

Lily approached the counter and grabbed a piece of bacon. "You were right," she said back, chuckling as Remus pushed her towards the table and forced her to sit. "I was thinking we might get out today, see the area."

"It rains too much here!" Harry complained, looking out the windows where it was, indeed, raining.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Harry, it rains as much back home, if not more, than it does here."

"But that's a different kind of rain," Harry insisted as Remus floated plates of breakfast over to the table. "I had friends at home; I don't have any here."

The witch gave her son a sympathetic look. "You'll make friends," she promised, cutting up Nicholas' french toast.

"As eager as I am to go out into the very wet world to which we've moved," Remus said, sitting down himself, "how do you propose we do so? We haven't got a car and we certainly can't Apparate everywhere."

"I'd thought of that," Lily said, pointing her fork full of syrupy french toast at the wizard. "Obviously, we can't keep calling a taxi; with the way you tip, we'll be broke in a month." Remus chuckled. "But I was thinking we could at least take a taxi into town and buy a car. James has given us full access to his Gringotts vault and so long as we don't put him into bankruptcy, it won't be a problem."

Remus nodded and began to reply when there was a knock at the door. He and Lily looked at one another briefly. "Who could that be?" he asked, slowly standing.

Lily shrugged. "Boys, stay here a moment, finish your breakfast…" The two adults made their way into the front hallway where Lily peeked through a window beside the door. "Looks like it might be neighbors," she whispered to Remus.

"Well, don't be rude, answer the door," he responded with a grin.

Lily did. Standing on the porch, umbrella in one hand and a plate of cookies in the other was a woman who looked to be in her mid-forties. She was built rather like Molly Weasley, though instead of red hair, she had light brown. Her brown eyes were very friendly as they surveyed Lily and Remus. "Oh, hello," Lily said, smiling.

"Hello, my name is Wendy Burns, I live just down the street." She turned and pointed at one of the houses with her umbrella. "We heard you'd arrived yesterday, but nobody really saw you, or we would have come by sooner." Lily thought this was a rather odd statement to make – who actually admitted that they were spying out the windows on their neighbors?

Remus smiled and stuck out his hand. "John Broderick," he said, shaking their neighbors hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you. And this is my wife, Rose."

"Well, it's good to meet both of you," Wendy said after shaking Lily's hand. "Headmaster West spoke so highly of you!"

Remus' eyebrows rose. "Er, I'm sorry, who?"

The woman gave Remus a knowing smile. "Headmaster West, of the Salem Witchcraft Institute."

Lily and Remus gave each other startled looks. Unless they'd missed something, nobody was supposed to know that they were wizards. "I'm sorry, did you say _witchcraft_?" Lily said, attempting to be oblivious.

Chuckling, the woman nodded. "It's okay, dear," she said kindly. "When your furniture was being moved in, a few of us spoke to the young men doing the moving. Said they were friends of yours and that you needed a bit of a change from England, so you've decided to move your family here."

_I'm going to kill James_, Lily thought briefly and without much conviction.

"You do realize this is a wizarding town, don't you?" the woman asked, still smiling as she looked around at the other houses. "One of the very few here in the States, but definitely full of magic."

"Er, actually, we didn't," Remus said honestly, glancing at Lily's equally oblivious face. "Though I must say it is a relief."

The woman chuckled again. "Well, I've made you some chocolate chip cookies – fresh out of the oven. If you need help with anything or your children need someone to play with, there are plenty of us around – I've got four of my own that are still at home." She suddenly looked uncertain. "You do have children, don't you? I thought your friends said you did, but I can't really tell right now; mine usually aren't this quiet…"

"Yes, we do," Remus said, smiling. "Two boys, Harry who is five and Nicholas who is three."

"Wonderful," Wendy said. "Well, I'll let you get settled. Please let us know if you need absolutely anything."

Lily smiled and nodded. "We will. And thank you for the bisc– er, cookies," she said, holding up the plastic wrapped plate.

Wendy winked and headed back down the street in the downpour. Remus and Lily watched her until she disappeared in what they assumed was her home and closed the door. "Nice woman," Remus said, taking the cookies off Lily. "Did James tell you we were going to be living in a wizarding town?"

"Nope," she said airily. "You?"

He shook his head and followed her back into the kitchen where the boys had finished their breakfasts. Both boys were standing; Harry stood behind his brother with his right arm around the younger boy's neck in what Lily recognized to be a wrestling move from Sirius' and James' most recent obsession. "If I see you doing that again," she sternly told Harry as she forced him to relinquish his hold on Nicholas before the smaller boy's face grew any more blue, "forget grounded until eleven! You'll be grounded until you've gotten married!"

"I was just showing him how to do a sleeper hold!" Harry said.

"How would you like me to try it on you?" Remus asked with raised eyebrows and twitching lips, his arms outstretched as he advanced on Harry. The result was for Harry to scream and duck Remus' arms, forcing the wizard to chase him around the house for the next half an hour.

"Boys," Lily sighed, looking over at Nicholas. Her youngest son was now staring out the windows. "What's wrong, sweetie? Did Harry hurt you?"

Nicholas shook his head and sighed. "I miss Daddy," he said quietly.

"So do I," Lily replied, picking Nicholas up and hugging him closely. "But we'll see him soon. Would you like a biscuit before we go out?"

"Does Harry get one?" Nicholas asked.

"Would you prefer he didn't?" Lily asked, grinning. Nicholas nodded vehemently. Chuckling, the witch took her son over and gave him a cookie before setting him in the floor again. "Eat it quickly, then get dressed."

"Thanks, Mummy!" Nicholas called, already out of the kitchen and on his way upstairs, shouting the whole way about how he'd gotten a cookie and Harry didn't.

* * *

"_Stupefy!_" James yelled, knocking his current opponent to the ground. He quickly turned around, searching the field for Sirius and Peter. He located them several yards away, both locked in a furious battle with their own Death Eaters. Cursing enemies as he passed, James ran over to help his friends; they managed to stun four and give a fifth bat wings growing from his nose when they heard Mad-Eye's voice from not very far away.

"We're outnumbered!" the Head Auror shouted. "Retreat!"

"Aw, but I was just getting into it!" Sirius whined, cursing another Death Eater before glancing at Peter and James. A moment later, he Disapparated.

"Come on, Wormtail!" James yelled at the wizard. Both of them disappeared from the battle almost at the same time and reappeared just outside Headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix.

"Took you long enough," said a voice from the back porch.

James walked up the stairs and through the door, showing Sirius a specific finger as he passed. Sirius and Peter followed him into the large house that belonged to Alastor Moody. Due to his paranoia, his home had made the perfect headquarters for the Order; every protection, defensive, unplottable, and Muggle repellent charm known to wizardkind had been placed on it. This evening, the kitchen had turned into a small infirmary where those who'd been at the fight were getting their injuries looked over by other Order members. Luckily, most of the injuries were minor – just a few cuts and bruises – though James didn't like the angle Fabian Prewett's leg seemed to be stuck at.

"You three all right?" asked Alice Longbottom, glancing up at them briefly as she healed the infected-looking cut on Sturgis Podmore's shin.

James nodded. "We're fine. Where's Mad-Eye?"

Alice jerked her head towards the sitting room just off the kitchen. "He's briefing Dumbledore," she responded. "What happened out there?"

"Same old story," Sirius sighed, grabbing a few butterbeers from the icebox and passing them to his friends. "Too many Death Eaters, not enough of us."

James pulled the cork out of his bottle and left his friends to help Alice while he listened in on what Mad-Eye was telling Dumbledore.

"We were outnumbered again, Albus," the Auror was saying to the Headmaster. "Their numbers are growing and if we keep losing people, we're not going to last much longer."

James sat in an armchair and watched Albus Dumbledore's pensive face in the fireplace. "We haven't a choice, Alastor," Dumbledore responded.

"So you're just going to keep letting them pick us off, one-by-one?"

"Certainly not," Dumbledore said. "But we also cannot allow them to know that we're so small in numbers."

"You think they don't know that?" James asked with raised eyebrows. Mad-Eye and Dumbledore looked at him. "They're going to know we're outnumbered and Voldemort is going to keep recruiting until there are twenty Death Eaters to every one Order member. Face it, we're losing. We're all exhausted; we can't keep battling every other day. It keeps up like this, the Death Eaters aren't going to have to worry about us; we'll have died from lack of sleep."

Dumbledore's own eyebrows rose to meet the younger wizard's. "Are you suggesting we surrender, James?"

"Of course I'm not!" James retorted, not hiding his annoyance. "All I'm saying is we need a break, we need more people helping us. The Auror squads are great, but they're just as tired as we are. We all have our weaknesses, Dumbledore; what's Voldemort's? If you don't know, it might be good to find out." He stood up again. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm expecting a call from my wife and then I need to sleep for the next week and a half."

As he left the room, he heard Dumbledore sigh. "He is under far too much stress…"

* * *

Nearly two weeks since their arrival in the United States, Lily was beginning to settle into a very comfortable routine and was actually starting to enjoy her new surroundings. She missed James horribly, but knew he had his reasons for doing what he had. They spoke several times a week, but lately, he'd been so busy with work at the Ministry, trouble with Voldemort and the Death Eaters, and Order meetings, that it was becoming more difficult for Lily to reach him during hours when the boys were awake. She and Remus tuned in to the Muggle news every few evenings and watched as stories of odd occurrences that would have been much more important at home were nothing more than quick mentions. Even on the wizarding wireless, the attacks by Voldemort didn't get more than a few moments of airtime before they reported on Quidditch scores.

"This is ridiculous!" Lily said in annoyance, waving her wand to turn the wireless off. "I hate not knowing what's going on or if they're okay."

Remus sighed and lowered his book, knowing "they" meant James. "Lily," he said patiently, "if something had happened, we would know by now, don't you think? From what I've been able to tell, the news we're hearing is at least a few days old. You read the letter from Dumbledore yesterday; not much has changed, everyone is okay, and there isn't any reason to worry."

She stared at him with raised eyebrows. "No reason to worry," she repeated. "Are you really telling me, Remus, that you're not the least bit concerned about your friends?"

"That's not what I said." Remus sat forward a little and reached for her hand. "I'm just saying that you shouldn't give yourself an aneurism every time you don't hear what you expect from the news." Lily glared a little and Remus sighed. "Look, it's only a fortnight before Christmas; James and Sirius will be here in a few days and it will be like it has been every other Christmas, and you'll see that James is perfectly fine. All right?"

Lily nodded, though Remus knew she was only humoring him. A few minutes later, she muttered goodnight and headed up to bed.

Remus looked around the living room, smiling at the tree they had setup in the corner beside the fireplace. That day had been one of the few times since they had come here that Lily had seemed truly happy. She and Remus had let the boys do most of the decorations on the tree – Nicholas had been in charge of the garland and therefore, most of it was surrounded the tree's base, and Harry had done the lights and most of the baubles and bulbs. Lily had insisted on placing the star at the tip of the tree herself and she had charmed it to sparkle different colors. The final touch had been Remus': he'd found a plastic, winged fairy in one of the boxes of decorations Lily had bought and he charmed that to fly slowly around the tree, mostly for the boys' amusement.

Outside their home, snow covered the ground and more was falling quickly. The moon would be full two nights after his fellow Marauders' arrival, and though James had insisted that this had nothing to do with why they picked that specific day to fly out, Remus appreciated it all the same. Since he had been fifteen years old, he hadn't transformed without at least one of his friends, and he could already feel the wolf's intolerance of his new surroundings.

For the most part, the four of them had settled quite well in the neighborhood. As promised, Wendy Burns had provided daily entertainment for Harry and Nicholas in the form of her young three boys and daughter. She had introduced the new arrivals to the other neighbors in the area, all of whom had welcomed them just as easily as Wendy had.

_Well, at least if we have to be stuck here for any amount of time, it's not completely miserable_, Remus thought, pulling the curtains shut before heading up to his own bedroom.

* * *

Lily was reaching her wit's end with her sons. Both of them had been jumping around, bouncing off the walls since Remus had left for the airport two hours ago. While she understood their excitement in seeing their father after several weeks, the constant running around and screaming at the top of their voices was getting quite old. In an effort to get them to calm down, Lily had wrapped them up in winter coats, scarves, and gloves, and had taken them out to the backyard to build snowmen. This had resulted in a snowball fight and Lily receiving a snowball in the face, thrown by Harry.

She'd finally given up. Now she stood on the porch overlooking the backyard with a cup of hot chocolate in her hands as the boys ran around to their hearts' content. Faintly, she heard the front door slam and spun around in time to hear Remus yell, "We're back!"

"Harry, Nicky! Daddy's here!" Lily called excitedly to the boys, holding the door open for them. She didn't even attempt to get them to stop and take off their wet clothes as they ran through the kitchen to James. She looked on with a wide smile as James enthusiastically hugged and kissed his sons. After a moment, he looked around for her. Their eyes met and Lily's body began to tingle with excitement. She completely forgot about the boys being in the room as well as Sirius kneeling down to accept hugs from his godsons: James stood slowly and began to cross the kitchen towards her, love shining brightly in his hazel eyes.

"Hi," he said quietly when he reached her.

Lily's response was to wrap her arms around her husband's neck and kiss him long and hard. She hardly even heard the noises of disgust coming from her sons and Sirius. At some point, Remus must have ushered the three of them out of the kitchen to give the Potters some private time, because when they eventually broke apart, they were completely alone. "It's so good to see you," she said, not loosening her grip on James.

He chuckled huskily. "Apparently," he responded, kissing her again. "We should go join the others."

"Why?"

* * *

For most of the evening, James and Lily were cuddled up together on the sofa, listening as Sirius and Remus jokingly argued about stupid things they hadn't been able to argue about in weeks. They had allowed Harry and Nicholas to stay up as late as they could manage in order to spend more time with their visitors; they had both fallen asleep on the floor beside the Christmas tree after dessert.

"So why didn't Peter come out?" Remus asked.

Sirius shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "He's been acting a little oddly lately, hasn't he, Prongs? We offered to buy his ticket, but he said he's got too much going on this week."

Lily raised an eyebrow. "Too much going on?" she asked dubiously. "Peter?"

James nodded. "Now you see why we say he's acting oddly," he said, rubbing Lily's shoulder. "We thought he was just reacting to the four of you leaving, but I started thinking about it, and he's been like this for some time now. Ever since Benjy Fenwick's death, at least."

"That was over a year ago!" Lily argued. "I haven't noticed anything strange with him."

"It's been subtle changes," Sirius said, shrugging again. "Like how he'll decide out of nowhere that he doesn't want to join us for dinner or how he leaves right after Order meetings."

"Or like the other night when the three of us were sitting around, watching the telly and he jumps up out of nowhere and announces that he's got to help his mum with something," James added. Remus and Lily were now looking at the two wizards concernedly. "I tried convincing Padfoot that our dear Wormtail has just met himself a nice woman and is just disappearing to spend time with her."

"At which point I lost every bit of food I had consumed in two months," Sirius said matter-of-factly. "Besides, if Wormtail had a new girlfriend, why wouldn't he want to introduce her to us?"

Lily and Remus only stared at him. "Probably because he's afraid you would make fun of him until the day he dies," Lily said dully.

"Or maybe it's not a girl at all," James suggested, scratching his head.

Sirius' brow furrowed as he worked that one out. His friends watched and pinpointed the moment realization hit his mind: his eyes widened and his mouth formed an O. "Well," he said after a moment, "there isn't anything wrong with that… Right?"

Lily rolled her eyes. "Be nice to Peter," she said. "Both of you."

Remus chuckled at the look James gave his wife. "What else is going on?"

After a few more hours of James and Sirius bringing them up to speed on the war and how the Order of the Phoenix was becoming more outnumbered than ever before, Lily deemed it time for sleep. She and James carried their sons up to their bedrooms while Remus showed Sirius to the room he would be using during his stay.

"You liking it out here, Moony?" Sirius asked before Remus left the room.

"It's not horrible," Remus admitted with a smile. "I certainly miss my family and friends, but I'm adjusting rather well, I think."

Sirius nodded. "James has been really worried about Lily and the boys," he said quietly.

Remus closed the door and furrowed his brow. "Why? They're fine…"

"You know James," Sirius said, shrugging. "To him, they won't be safe enough until they're underground in a time-release shelter that won't open until eight days after Voldemort's been defeated. I don't know; honestly, he's been acting odder than Peter has lately. He's worried about his family and I'm worried about him, really worried."

"Why, what's he doing?" Remus asked, leaning against a desk in the bedroom.

"Moping around when he thinks no one is watching; snapping at everyone at Order meetings, more than usual, I mean. And he's saying weird things, like how he's going to end the war on his terms and nobody's going to see it coming. Stupid rubbish like that."

"End it on his terms?" Remus repeated. Sirius nodded. The werewolf sighed. "Well, maybe he's just missing his family."

"Yeah, I thought so too, until Gideon Prewett told me last week he spotted James outside the Hog's Head Inn at two in the bloody morning."

Remus blinked. "What the hell was he doing there?"

"Couldn't tell you," Sirius said. "I only hope he relaxes enough while we're here that he goes home with a clear head. This whole ordeal is taking its toll on him, Moony, and I don't know how much longer he can take of it…"

Not long following that discussion, Remus headed to bed. He lay there for nearly an hour, staring at the ceiling while he wondered what was going on in James Potter's mind. What could possibly bring him to the Hog's Head Inn at such an odd hour? James always been friendly with Aberforth Dumbledore, but he also knew that after nightfall, the place turned into a Death Eater haven. As he drifted off to sleep, Remus promised himself that if he found the correct timing during James and Sirius' visit, he would pull James aside and, if needed, knock some sense into him.


	3. Chapter 3

"You reckon we can sneak around tonight?" Sirius asked as he and James followed Remus to where he would have his transformation.

James snorted and looked around the wooded area. "Fun as that would be, Lily would probably kill us," he said. "Apparently they like their neighbors."

Remus looked over his shoulder. "Yes, they, unlike the two of you, have what we civilized people call manners. Besides, this isn't like back home; our neighbors are far too close for me to even dare risking a late night werewolf run."

"Oh come on, Moony!" Sirius said, catching up to the werewolf and putting an arm around his shoulders. "You've been locked up with the little woman and the young'uns so long, you've forgotten what it's like to have fun!"

"I know you didn't just call my wife 'the little woman', Padfoot," James said. "Because if you did, I'd make sure she slipped something into the Christmas pudding."

Remus laughed weakly at Sirius' face. Though it had been an empty threat, Sirius didn't put it past James or his wife to poison the pudding just enough to make Sirius' evening miserable. Sirius very quickly changed the subject. "How much further is this place, Prongs? We're going to have to carry Moony before long."

"It's just up here," James said, pointing his lit wand towards a group of trees. "Dumbledore wanted it far enough out of the way that neighbors or Muggles might stumble on it."

"Good thinking," Remus said, glancing through the snow covered branches at the rising moon.

It was another few minutes before the three Marauders reached the stone well that led to Remus' transformation area. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," James muttered, tapping his wand to the stone cover. He'd planned on making Remus do it as a sort of christening ceremony, but he looked barely able to stand at the moment, let alone open a door. Before their eyes, the stone lid separated from the middle and revealed a stone staircase.

"After you," Sirius said to Remus, grinning.

Remus rolled his eyes and led the way down the steep stairs. He lit his wand at the bottom and his eyes widened. He had expected a simple stone room that would be uncomfortable and cold. He'd expected to have to spend the whole night on a dirt floor with nothing to keep his mind off his transformation. Instead, the short hall opened into a large room with stone walls and wooden floor. The moment he stepped into the room, several lanterns lit, as did the fireplace directly across from the entrance. The walls were mostly hidden by several Gryffindor banners along with blown up photographs of Remus' friends.

"We thought it'd be a tad easier for the wolf if the two of you were surrounded by familiar things," James said, walking past his best friend. "Make him remember the good times we had at Hogwarts, you know?"

Remus swallowed a lump that had suddenly developed in his throat. "I'm sure he'll love it," he said with a small grin. "And what keeps someone from falling into the fire?"

"Permanent shield charm," James said proudly. "Now, gentlemen, the usual rules apply: wands will be put away until moonset tomorrow morning, and Moony, it's time to strip. Wouldn't want those lovely clothes to get ripped to shreds, would we?"

While Remus took his clothes off, James and Sirius very carefully turned their attention upwards to the ceiling that Dumbledore had insisted on charming to look like the ceiling in the Great Hall at Hogwarts to reflect the weather outside. Currently, the sky was bright white with a very dull orange tinge as snow clouds moved in.

"Looks like a storm tonight," Sirius muttered. "We'll be walking back in the morning in six feet of snow…"

The two wizards turned back as they heard their friend's breathing begin to hitch. Remus was hunched on the ground, an old blanket covering his body. "Now," he said croakily a few moments later.

Exchanging a glance first, James and Sirius began their simple transformations into their Animagus forms. Remus looked up and forced his mind to focus on the large black dog and tall brown stag whose antlers seemed to very nearly scrape the ceiling. The full moon broke through the snow clouds on the ceiling and Remus felt his own transformation begin. His bones broke, his muscles tore, his body organs rearranged themselves. As always, it felt like several agonizing hours later that the majority of the pain stopped.

Moony opened his dark eyes and whimpered as he raised his head to look at his surroundings. When he was able to focus, he spotted his pack mates watching him in concern. Briefly, he growled threateningly at the animals before a voice woke up in the back of his mind.

_No. They're your friends, remember?_ Remus Lupin told the werewolf. _They're here to help you. Do not harm them._

The threatening growl subsided and was replaced with a playful bark. Moony's tongue hung out of his mouth to communicate with the dog and stag that he remembered them and they would not be hurt if they approached closer.

Padfoot responded with his own canine grin and crouched low to the ground, barking playfully while the majestic stag stood beside him, seemingly rolling his hazel eyes.

* * *

"When's Dad getting back?" Harry asked, entering the kitchen early the next morning. He sat beside his brother at the table and very carefully poured himself a glass of pumpkin juice. "Uncle Padfoot promised to take me up the mountain today."

Lily glanced at him over his shoulder as she flipped the sausages in the frying pan with her wand. "Any moment, Harry," she told her oldest son. "And I'm not sure you and Sirius will be able to get past the backyard in this storm, let alone up the mountain and back safely."

"But you promised we could go!" Harry said.

With a sigh, Lily looked out the kitchen door. A blizzard was whipping up outside, and Lily could barely see the trees a few yards away. She hoped James, Sirius, and Remus hadn't gotten lost… "If the storm lets up, you can go," Lily eventually told Harry. "But as of right now, it's out of the question."

"There's Dad!" Nicholas said, pointing out the window.

Lily's head turned quickly and she temporarily abandoned breakfast in order to hold the door open for her husband and friends. Remus was being held up by his two friends, his head covered in a sweatshirt to shield him from the cold. "Come on, quickly!" Lily called to them. "I'm freezing!"

"Keep your knickers on, Lily!" Sirius yelled back, sounding slightly annoyed. "It's kind of hard to hurry when you've got snow hitting you in the face with the force of a bludger!"

The three wizards entered the kitchen and Lily closed the door before turning around to face them. While Sirius and James had been spending full moon nights with a werewolf in their Animagus forms since they were fifteen, Lily still worried about their well-being. They and Remus looked fine, other than the fact that they could barely keep their eyes open.

"Hungry, Remus?" Lily asked as James helped him to a table. Harry and Nicholas were now begging Sirius to transform into the big black dog so they could ride on his back. "Boys, let Sirius relax for a few minutes, all right?"

"It's fine, Lil," Sirius said, holding Nicholas. "Maybe after I take a nap…"

Lily busied herself with making plates for her family. Once Remus had eaten his fill, he quietly excused himself and went upstairs to get some sleep. From experience, Lily knew Remus would be mostly back to normal some time after lunch. While James and Sirius went upstairs to get their own rest, Lily found a way for her sons to quietly pass the time: helping her wrap Christmas presents for the wizards.

When Sirius finally wandered back down after lunch, yawning the whole way, he stopped to look at the newly, and rather badly, wrapped presents under the tree and chuckled. He looked at Lily. "Teaching the boys, are you?" he asked.

She nodded. "I tried to show them the proper way, and Harry was starting to get it, but Nicky wanted to do it his way or not at all," she said, scooting over on the couch so he could sit beside her. Sirius smiled and rested his head on the couch's back. "There are sandwiches in the kitchen if you're hungry."

He shook his head. "I'm still full from that wonderful breakfast you made."

Lily looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Sirius Black isn't hungry? I'm in shock! Are you ill?"

"Funny," he responded, nudging her in the side playfully. "I have to admit, I've missed having you around. There hasn't been anyone to threaten to curse off my body parts." Lily laughed. "But you're better off out here, the boys especially. Things aren't looking too optimistic back home."

Amusement subsiding, Lily studied Sirius' troubled face. It was very rare that anyone saw his worry. "Somebody will beat him," she told Sirius. "Nobody's invincible, Sirius, not even Lord Voldemort."

He gave a humorless snort. "Tell Dumbledore that," he responded. "With the way he's been talking, the only way this war is going to end is with a bloody miracle." He gave Lily an apologetic look. "Sorry, you don't need to be hearing all that, do you?"

"At least someone's telling me the truth," Lily responded a tad bitterly. "Every time I talk to James, he skirts over the worst of it – last week he told me Dorcas Meadowes went on holiday, then Dumbledore sent me a package of letters from Alice Longbottom, and _she_ told me what really happened." Lily shivered.

Sirius nodded. "Well, in James' defense, he knows that if he tells you everything, you're going to worry, but if you only know parts–"

"I'm not a weakling, Sirius," Lily said firmly. "I've handled a hell of a lot more than he gives me credit for."

"Lil, you're misunderstanding me," Sirius said rather patiently. "He knows what you can handle, but if he keeps telling you that the Order members are being picked off every time we blink an eye, you're going to drive yourself completely mental. He's just trying to protect you and his way of doing that is by telling you everything is hunky-dory."

Lily's raised her eyebrows while her lips twitched. "You've been in America three days and you're already saying things like 'hunky-dory'? Remus must have knocked your head into a corner of that room last night or something."

* * *

On Christmas Eve, rather than participating in the festivities around him, James sat on the hearth of the fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate in hand and watched his sons play with Sirius, Remus, and Lily. He hated this whole situation. In less than a week, he and Sirius would be boarding a plane back to London and to the war against Voldemort, leaving his family behind once more. His sons were growing rapidly and he was missing everything. He'd promised himself growing up when his own father was absent for long periods of time doing Auror work that he would always be there for his children, that he wouldn't come home hours after his children had gone to sleep. He'd sworn his children would always know he loved them and no matter how busy he became, he would always find time to spend with them. And here he was on Christmas Eve, a mere visitor to his wife and sons.

_It's for their safety_, a voice said in the back of his mind.

_Yeah? And what about my own sanity?_ he replied. _I come back from Order meetings or battles or stakeouts to an empty house where I lay on the couch all bloody night, wishing my family was there._

_But think about how great it will be when they come home and don't have to worry about being abducted or attacked._

James silenced the two voices. It was the same argument his mind had been having since he watched Marlene McKinnon backing down his driveway to take his family to the airport weeks ago, and it wasn't making him feel any better. He knew he couldn't be selfish about this – his family was better off where they were, safe and happy – but every day it was becoming harder to deal with.

He glanced at his left as Lily sat next to him. He smiled as she wrapped her arm with his and rested her head on his shoulder. "Why so antisocial, my love?" she asked, smiling as Nicholas jumped of the couch and landed on Sirius' stomach.

He shrugged his free shoulder. "Just thinking," he murmured, kissing the top of her head.

"Careful, James, don't want to hurt yourself," she joked. "I can already see a bit of smoke coming out of your ears." He chuckled as she pretended to waft smoke away from his head. "Come on, what's wrong? It's Christmas Eve; usually you're louder than the kids."

Again, he shrugged. "I don't like this," he said quietly, finally looking directly at her. "I miss you, Lily, and the boys."

She smiled sadly. "I miss you too, James," she told him. "But like you said, before we know it, the war will be over, and Harry, Nicky, and I will be home with you again. Right?"

He sighed and nodded broodingly. "Yeah," he said, knowing that neither of them believed his response.

"Oi, Prongs!" Sirius grunted as Harry climbed on top of him as well as Nicholas. Remus was on the couch, doubled over in laughter. "Help me out here!"

James and Lily rolled their eyes at one another, but got up, each of them grabbing a child, before Remus threw a pillow at Sirius' head. "Ow! What was that for, you tosser?" Sirius asked indignantly, throwing the pillow back as hard as he could.

"Watch your language, Black!" Lily said loudly. "Now I know where Harry's getting it!"

"All right, all right," James called, laughing. "Boys, sit down – that includes you two." He pointed at his two best friends.

Once everybody had calmed down a bit, James sat back on the hearth with Lily. "In order to continue a family tradition, everybody gets to open _one_ gift." Harry and Nicholas exchanged excited looks as their father dropped to the carpet and slid over to the large pile of Christmas presents below the tree. "You can open your gift only when everybody has one in their hands. Anybody not abiding by these rules," James looked pointedly to Sirius, "gets nothing." Very carefully, James searched the gifts for particular gifts for his wife, children, and best friends, and Nicholas selected one for his father. Everyone now had a wrapped package sitting on the floor before them, and James looked around, grinning. "Well, what are you lot waiting for? Open them!"

All the selected gifts were chosen merely to hold the children and Sirius over until morning – Harry's and Nicholas' gifts were new pairs of pajamas, Harry's decorated with broomsticks, golden snitches, bludgers, and quaffles, while Nicholas' had different colored dragons; Sirius received a package of chocolate liqueur cauldrons filled with firewhiskey; Remus' gift was a book James knew he'd been eyeing at Flourish and Blott's before he'd left; Lily was admiring a set of rare potions ingredients found only on Tuesdays during the three-quarter moon; and the gift Nicholas had picked out for James was a compass for his broomstick.

"It's for if you get lost," Nicholas happily explained as James examined the gift.

"I love it, Nicky, thank you," James said.

Lily's brow furrowed as she tilted her head to the side, listening to something. "Do you hear that?" she whispered dramatically to the others. Everybody stopped making noise immediately. James happened to look down at his wife's lap where she was tapping her wand underneath the wrapping paper she'd taken off her gift; the effect was a very distant jingling noise that excitedly widened the eyes of both Harry and Nicholas. "Father Christmas is on his way!" Lily said, standing quickly. "Come on! If you want presents tomorrow, you've got to get to sleep! Say goodnight to Daddy, Remus, and Sirius."

The boys very quickly gave the wizards hugs and practically flew up the stairs, their mother following them, chuckling and rolling her eyes.

"Ah, to be young and carefree again," Sirius said airily, stretching out on the carpet and opening his package of liqueurs.

* * *

Before the sun had fully risen the next morning, Lily, James, Sirius, and Remus were stumbling down the stairs, still mostly asleep after staying up most of the night together. Harry and Nicholas were literally bouncing up and down, eager to do nothing more than open their Christmas gifts.

"Not until after breakfast," Lily yawned, pushing the boys into the kitchen where James had started coffee for the adults and was heating up the stove with his wand to cook breakfast.

Once the children had hastily eaten their breakfasts and the adults gave up on their own due to the children bouncing around the kitchen, asking them when they would be done, they moved into the living room. Here, Nicholas and Harry practically dove into their giant piles of presents while the adults looked on, still sipping on their coffee. "Honestly, Sirius, did you have to buy them so much?" James asked in exasperation as the boys opened several rather expensive gifts from their godfather. "You're going to spoil them!"

Sirius looked incredibly unconcerned as he watched Harry unwrap official Puddlemere United Quidditch robes shrunken to his size. "What good is it having godchildren if you can't spoil them?" he asked.

Once the adults were able to see a good bit of the floor where their presents for each other lay hidden, they sat with the boys and began opening their own gifts.

"Oh, James, it's beautiful!" Lily exclaimed, opening a rectangular velvet box wrapped in shining green paper. Inside, was a small, heart-shaped golden locket inscribed with her initials.

James watched her, beaming. "Open it," he said quietly.

She did and her mouth dropped open. Though she should have known better, she had expected both sides of the heart to each have a picture – perhaps one of James, the other of their children. Instead, when she pulled apart the clasp, an image rose a few inches above the locket, and the image changed every few seconds – one was of James and herself at their wedding, smashing cake into each other's faces; next was James holding Harry for the first time. She watched the pictures change for several minutes, the last one being one of her entire family together before she and Remus had brought the boys to America, before closing it and giving James a deep, rather tearful kiss.

"I take it you like it, then," he asked huskily, smiling against her lips.

"I _love _it," she corrected him, before he passed the locket and chain to him. She turned his back to him and lifted her long red pair. "Put it on, then. Let's see how it looks."

Sirius looked over at Remus. "You wouldn't be insulted if I didn't snog you for this, would you, Moony?" he asked, holding up a new pair of sunglasses charmed not only keep out sunlight at all angles, but to allow the user to clearly see in darkness and indoors, without having to remove the glasses and consequentially lessening the user's "coolness".

Remus put on a look of mock-disappointment. "Oh, but Padfoot, I was dreaming about that all night! Kiss me, Sirius!"

Lily and James rolled their eyes at their two friends as Remus chased Sirius around the house begging for a kiss, while Sirius threatened to curse off several very useful parts of Remus' body if he didn't stop soon.

* * *

Much later in the morning, Harry and Nicholas had taken their new toys and things up to their rooms to play, leaving the adults to lie around quite lazily as they listened to Christmas music on the wizard wireless. They were all doing their best to ignore the fact that in only a few more days, James and Sirius would be returning to England. Every once in a while, Remus glanced at James, catching him watching his wife as though he was trying to etch every detail of her into his mind to hold him over until his next visit.

In the early afternoon, the most exciting thing to happen was the neighbors came over to wish them a Merry Christmas. It was amusing for Remus to watch James try not to show that he had any romantic feelings towards Lily while the visitors were there – it was all a part of their cover for Lily and Remus to be married, after all. Remus' amusement, however, deflated like a balloon when Wendy Burns' husband Carl very unhelpfully pointed out that Remus and Lily had entered the room at the exact same time and had stopped beneath the mistletoe. While the Burnses urged the couple to kiss, Remus was glancing over at James and Sirius, both of whom were watching on in amusement, though Remus could see a glint in James' eyes that promised pain if Remus dared kiss his wife. Finally, Lily rolled her eyes, grabbed Remus by the collar and kissed him square on the lips. Though it only lasted a moment, Remus' face was quite red and for the rest of the night, he had to endure Sirius and James' teasing. Luckily, the neighbors only believed Remus was shy about displays of public affection.

After dinner that consisted mostly of cakes and candy provided by James and Sirius, Lily had forced Sirius to help get the sugar-hyped children into their baths, then to bed. Somehow, James had avoided being recruited and was now sitting with Remus in the living room, both of them laughing as pounding feet ran above them, followed by Sirius' chasing footsteps.

James shook his head and chuckled. He looked over at Remus as his best friend read a book, hesitating. "Moony?" he asked quietly.

"Hmm?" Remus said, not looking up from what he was reading.

"Could I talk to you a moment?"

Remus looked up at this, noting the suddenly grim look on the other wizard's face. He closed his book and placed it on an end table. "Of course, what's on your mind?"

James stood suddenly and gestured for Remus to grab a coat. Bewildered, the werewolf did so and followed his friend out the backdoor and onto the cold, dark porch. Here, James leaned against a snow rail for some time, lost in his thoughts. "I don't know how I can thank you for what you're doing," James finally said quietly.

Brow furrowed, Remus replied, "What do you mean?"

"Leaving everything behind, coming all the way out here," James gestured around the yard, "for being so willing to protect my family."

Remus smiled a little. "James, unless you've forgotten, Lily and the boys are my family too," he said gently. "I don't have much left but my friends, and I haven't exactly left much behind – I was living in a rundown flat in a bad London neighborhood, sleeping with my wand at the ready in case someone broke in. I'd much rather be here."

"Well, either way," James said, waving this off. He sighed. "Moony, I need you to promise me something."

"What?"

"Promise me that no matter what happens to me you will take care of my family," James said bluntly. Remus opened his mouth, but James silenced him. "If I don't live to see the day that Voldemort has gone, I want you to keep Lily and the boys here until danger's passed, do whatever it takes. They are all that matter to me, Remus. And if something happens to me, I want to know they are being cared for."

Remus was speechless. "Of course, James, but what makes you think anything–"

James was shaking his head. "Don't play stupid, we both know damn well you're not!" he said rather angrily. "Voldemort isn't going to stop until he's found my family, and by now, he's bound to know they're not in the country. What's stopping him anymore from coming to my home and torturing the answer out of me? Nothing!" James was cut off as Sirius called through the house, looking for him and Remus. James called that they would be a moment, then looked back at Remus with a begging look. "Promise me, Remus."

Remus searched his friend's face, finding only pain, fear, and resolution in his face. Gulping, Remus finally nodded. "I promise, James."

A small smile that didn't quite reach his eyes appeared on the other wizard's face. "Good man," he said quietly. He quickly pulled Remus into a hug, kissing him on the side of the head before his mood changed completely and he was calling for Sirius.

Remus remained on the porch for some time in confusion. What had gotten in to James? All week he'd been carefree and relaxed, only speaking about Voldemort when Lily and Remus had asked on his first night there. It was almost as though James knew something bad was coming, that he was preparing for the worst. But Remus shook his head; James was no Seer, he couldn't know what would happen in the war when he returned home.

By the time Remus returned inside nearly half an hour after James, he had convinced his mind that James was just covering all his bases and everything would be fine. His dreams, however, said otherwise.


End file.
